Jo’el WorldWear’s Clutch – Hershey

Wow, this will turn heads any where. It’s the Hershey clutch from Nahui Ollin (pronounced: “Now-We Oh-Lean.”, the company supporting development in Mexico. When in 2003 the company’s founder Olga Abadi saw the plight of Mexican teenagers selling similar, but far lesser quality products on the streets, action was taken. A Mayan binding technique issued to link together recycled materials, including defective candy and gum wrappers. For an item the size of a handbag, an individual artisan will bind up to 4,000 defective wrappers to create a truly one-of-a-kind piece. Nahui Ollin invited the parents of the teenagers into family-friendly factories with day care centres on hand to learn to handcraft the bags. This keeps the youth in school where they should be – learning and building their futures. Plus, it helps parents find a new way to sustain their families with dignity and enthusiasm.